


Bravery

by carrotcat17



Series: Seven Souls (And Sans) [2]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Absolutely nothing could possibly go wrong with this, Gen, Right?, Sans makes a friend
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-18
Updated: 2018-01-14
Packaged: 2018-09-09 11:28:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8889070
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/carrotcat17/pseuds/carrotcat17
Summary: Sans is starting to come to terms with his condition...just in time to run into some new things to sort out! Also, the Underground gets a visitor.7 HP, 5 ATK, 8 DEF, 23 SPEED   And yes, I'm aware this thing is now updating approximately every five years. I'm still working on it. Bear with me, friends! Show's not over yet!   update as of 12/20/17 so y'all don't think I died: I am not dead and neither is this fic! I promise! I actually have a solid amount of the next chapter drafted, but I haven't been able to touch it in a while because I'm a senior in college majoring in English, and working on my own original book right now. If things ever slow down, I will attack this thing again with gusto. But until then know that I'm still kicking, just knee-deep in literary works and Robin Hood/medieval research!    View it on Deviantart here!View it on Tumblr here!





	1. Chapter 1

Sans stretched on his mattress and opened his eye sockets ever-so-slightly. Weak, mid-afternoon light was filtering down from the Surface above and through his window. The dim, watery glow outlined the shapes of his dresser and lamp - he never did get around to getting more batteries for the light, did he? - and off in the corner a heap of dirty laundry. He grumbled at the sight. It was his day off. And that meant it was his turn to do laundry. Maybe he could trick Paps into doing it today. Again.

He supposed he should be grateful. After all, Papyrus had agreed to do laundry all the other days, emphatically declaring that he was far better at it anyway. But he’d insisted that Sans do it at least once to “INSTILL A GOOD WORK ETHIC IN MY LAZY BROTHER.” Work ethic. Hilarious. Why couldn’t clothes just stay clean and fresh on their own?

He huffed and turned on his mattress, pulling his sheets over his head. It sounded infinitely more interesting to stay in bed for the whole day.

From down below him, he could hear the front door opening and shutting. Familiar footsteps thumped up the stairs and stopped just outside his bedroom door.

“BROTHER, PLEASE DON’T TELL ME YOU ARE  _ STILL _ ASLEEP! I HAVE FINISHED TWO FULL SENTRY SHIFTS IN TWO DIFFERENT PLACES, AND I’LL BET YOU HAVEN’T EVEN GOTTEN DRESSED! WHAT AM I GOING TO DO WITH YOU, SANS? ALL YOU EVER DO ANYMORE IS NAP AND LAY AROUND. I’LL BET YOU EVEN DO THAT AT WORK, TOO!”

“‘m up, bro, ‘m up,” Sans called out from under his bedsheet-cocoon, hoping he would be left relatively alone today.

The bedroom door burst open. Nope.

“SANS, YOU ARE MOST DEFINITELY  _ NOT _ UP! GET OUT OF BED YOU LAZYBONES! THERE ARE PLACES TO GO! PEOPLE TO SEE! LAUNDRY TO BE LAUNDERED!”

“papyrus…” Sans groaned, curling up into a tighter ball on his mattress. “this is the one and only day i get to have off! can’t you just let me  _ have _ it?” His pleas were followed by an indignant “HUFF.”

“NOT IF ‘HAVING IT’ MEANS YOU’RE GOING TO WASTE THE WHOLE THING IN BED! NO BROTHER OF MINE IS GOING TO SPEND ALL HIS TIME SLEEPING IT AWAY!”

“gimme five more minutes at least! i’ve been working myself  _ down to the bone _ all week. i need a break.”

Papyrus sniffed and yanked the sheets off. Sans curled up tighter, squeezing his sockets shut and growling.

“CLEARLY, YOU ARE IN A VERY NOT GREAT MOOD TODAY. BUT THAT IS NO EXCUSE! I AM NOT DOING THIS FOR YOU AGAIN, SANS! YOU HAVE TO CARRY YOUR WEIGHT AROUND HERE TOO, YOU KNOW!”

“carry my weight, hunh? then lemme ask ya, pap, who pays the rent?” Sans turned to scowl at his brother.

“WHY YOU DO, OF COURSE! DON’T YOU CARE ABOUT KEEPING THIS PLACE CLEAN? THIS IS OUR HOUSE! WE NEED TO TAKE PRIDE IN IT!”

Guess the thinly veiled jab had been still a little  _ too _ veiled.

“yeah, whatever,” Sans mumbled, turning to face the wall again. “you actually  _ like _ cleaning.”

“ONCE UPON A TIME I SEEM TO RECALL YOU DID, TOO!”

“never laundry.”

“I- WELL, OKAY, I SUPPOSE YOU ARE RIGHT ABOUT THAT ONE SMALL DETAIL…BUT YOU STILL HAVE TO DO IT TODAY! YOU PROMISED!”

There was that word again. The p-word. Sans was coming to really hate that word.

“fine. ugh. just gimme five-”

“NNNO!” Papyrus cut in, taking hold of Sans’ arm and pulling him out of bed and onto the floor. Sans went limp in one last-ditch effort to dissuade his brother, hanging like a sack.

“IF YOU DO NOT GET UP...HUFF...THIS INSTANT...HUFF...I KNOW YOU WON’T...URGH...MOVE...FOR THE NEXT TWO DAYS!! (COME ON, SANS ON YOUR FEET!) WE CAN’T HAVE THAT!” Papyrus stopped tugging, and shot a stern look down at Sans. “IN FACT, I’M GOING TO WATCH YOU VERY CLOSELY UNTIL I’M ABSOLUTELY, DAPSOLUTELY ONE HUNDRED AND NINE PERCENT CERTAIN YOU’RE DOING YOUR DUTY!”

Sans groaned. Guess there was no way out of it today. He shifted until his feet were under him. Papyrus finally let go of his arm.

“let’s go, then.”

“THAT’S THE SPIRIT!”

Sans lumbered about the house, gathering up clothes in a cardboard box. Papyrus was hot on his heels, picking up the articles Sans would have declared still clean, and adding them to the load.

“NOW DON’T FORGET, WHITES FIRST,  _ THEN _ REDS AND DARKS! WE DON’T WANT A REPEAT OF  _ LAST _ TIME. YOU HAD BETTER DO THE LIGHTS SEPARATELY, TOO,” Papyrus rambled as they reached the tiny closet they’d repurposed into a laundry room. Sans let the box thud on the floor, already winded, a decidedly permanent scowl on his face. He sulked as Papyrus set the machine up for him.

He knew he had no reason to be in such a bad mood. Heck, his brother was doing half the work even though he’d insisted so hard that Sans do it. It had just been a rough couple of nights.

He tried to remember when last he’d gotten a decent night’s sleep. It had to have been at least a week and a half. He was falling further and further behind on his projects at work, which was both a result of losing sleep and a cause of it. Heh. Pap was right. He probably did sleep more at work than he did at home, even.

Interestingly, though, it hadn’t been because of any dreams. Gaster had still been silent. Sans hoped he’d be able to establish communication again soon. Or...at all. He still kept the marble on him at all times, just in case.

But nope. The only reason he could think of for sleeping so poorly was stress. He supposed Gaster not talking to him anymore was pretty stressful. But frankly that was the least of his worries lately. Work was stressful. The machine...ugh. He didn’t even want to think about the machine right now. Rent was an ever-present and increasingly worrisome threat to a comfortable existence. Even Papyrus was getting on his nerves more than usual. He felt a bit guilty for that. It wasn’t Pap’s fault. He’d done nothing to deserve Sans’ short temper. If anything, Sans probably owed him a  _ week’s _ worth of laundry duty just for being such a difficult housemate.

He still didn’t want to do it, though.

“...hey paps,” he called, rifling through the box to find anything that was white. An exasperated voice responded after a moment from the general direction of the kitchen.

“WHAT IS IT NOW, SANS?”

“if i promised to make dinner tonight, would you wanna take my laundry duty for today?”

Sans waited for a response. When there wasn’t one at first, he sucked in his breath. Had he gone too far today?

“ONLY IF YOU PROMISE TO AT LEAST GET THE WHITES STARTED. I’LL DO THE REST, AND YOU CAN MAKE DINNER. BUT IT HAS TO BE SOMETHING  _ I _ WANT.”

Score.

Sans let out his breath, grinning. He really didn’t deserve such a wonderful brother. “deal.” he said. “whaddya want?”

Another pause.

Suddenly Papyrus appeared around the corner. His expression surprised Sans. He looked almost like he was on the verge of tears!

“COULD YOU MAYBE MAKE THAT SOUP YOU USED TO MAKE ALL THE TIME? THE ONE WITH ALL THE VEGETABLES?”

“u-uh...y-yeah, bro, no prob. are you... _ crying _ ?”

“ONLY A LITTLE!” Papyrus stamped his foot and furiously wiped a few stray tears from his sockets.

“IT’S JUST THAT...THIS IS THE FIRST TIME YOU’VE OFFERED TO COOK SOMETHING IN MONTHS! I’M SO PROUD OF YOU!”

“bro, i’m not sure making a couple of bowls of easy mac counts as cooking.”

“SHUT UP SANS, LET ME JUST HAVE THIS MOMENT.”

Sans chuckled. It  _ had _ been a long time, hadn’t it?

“BESIDES,” Papyrus added. “IF WE DON’T COUNT THE EASY MACARONI, IT’S BEEN FAR LONGER. I’M BEING GENEROUS IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT, WHICH I THINK IS A VERY GOOD THING TO BE.”

Oh, Papyrus. What had Sans done to deserve such a great brother?

“WE HAVE A DEAL, THEN! YOU GET THOSE WHITES GOING AND I’LL GO PICK UP THE INGREDIENTS THAT WE NEED FOR THE SOUP.”

Sans grinned, tossing an armful of tee shirts in the washer.

“nah, bro, i’ll go get the stuff. you’re always saying i need to get out and exercise more anyway.”

“(WELL, MAYBE I WOULDN’T HAVE TO SAY THAT SO OFTEN IF YOU WOULD AGREE TO DODGING PRACTICE A LITTLE MORE OFTEN.) ARE YOU SURE?”

“absolutely, bro. i could use the walk.”

Papyrus looked like he could barely contain himself. He shot a salute at Sans before disappearing around the corner again. Sans could hear him humming “softly” as he made his way through the house. Bless him. He had never been a very quiet monster.

Sans let his grin drop, reaching to massage a spot at the back of his skull. He really did need a walk. At the very least to clear his head.

He threw his jacket on and a “later, bro” over his shoulder before stepping out into the crisp, cold cavern. It seemed surprisingly bright today. Must be really sunny up there somewhere…

Sans didn’t even look in the direction of the market. His feet began moving in the direction of the woods. He buried his hands in his pockets, instinctively reaching for the marble nestled at the bottom. As usual, nothing happened. Perhaps if he could find that fabled “other lab” he could find a way to contact Gaster. Too bad he usually either didn’t have time or energy to the look these days. He was too behind on his work to go on goose chases.

He let out a puff of breath, absently watching the condensed air dissipate. What were the odds that lab even truly existed? It didn’t show up in  _ any _ of the schematics Sans had poured over so far. Maybe this was all just delusion. He could be going insane. Nah. If none of it was real, he wouldn’t be able to teleport. He clutched the marble in his pocket tighter, and thought back to that time at Undyne’s. Assuming his short cuts had come from Gaster... _ what else was he capable of? _

Sans was abruptly pulled out of his reveries by a snapping sound from somewhere up ahead.

He froze, soul pounding. He was beginning to figure these woods out pretty well. He’d never run into anyone else this far in. As far as he knew, no one lived out this far anymore. Once, yes, as was evidenced by the occasional cabin nestled into the corner of the odd clearing here and there. But they’d all been empty for years as monsters began moving closer together and forming towns like Snowdin.

He stood stock-still, straining to catch the slightest noise.

Nothing.

He must be going crazy for real this time. Sans forced his soul to calm down, and shrugged, resuming his stroll. It was probably just some hooligan teenager, out exploring. Nothing to worry about.

Then it happened again. This time off to the right.

Sans whipped around, soul ignoring his silent pleas to keep calm. He could feel a slight pressure in his eye socket. He put a hand to it and pulled the other out of its pocket.

“who’s there?” he called out, trying his best to keep his voice from shaking.

No response.

“hey, c’mon,” he continued. “i may be fond of jokes, but this isn’t funny.”

Still no response. Sans was suddenly aware just how deep into the woods he’d walked. With 7 HP.

Suddenly, he caught a flash of movement in his peripheral vision. The pressure in his socket increased from a dull throb to a sharp ping. His vision blurred and he instinctively squeezed his eye shut. There was another crack. Sans panicked and teleported behind a tree.

He risked a peek out into the clearing he’d been in moments before. Still no sign of anyone. He turned to inspect the trees behind him and side-stepped just in time to avoid an oncoming fist.

“whoa!” he inhaled sharply, taking a few extra steps to regain his balance and some space between him and this mystery enemy. “watch where you’re swingin’ that thing, will ya!?”

“S-sorry! Sorry! I- you just scared me!”

“scared  _ you _ !?” Sans exclaimed. “what about  _ me _ ? i’ve got a delicate heart, my friend. and you just about destroyed it  _ twice _ !” He brushed himself down, trying not to show how shaken he was at having almost been dusted, shooting a glare at his would-be attacker. She was like no other monster he’d ever see before. And he’d seen quite a few. Still there was something inherently...familiar...about her appearance. Was it the pale skin and red braids peaking out from under a...questionably fashionable...bandana? Or the big blue eyes that looked unlike any monster’s eye? Maybe it was the stance...or the lack of a tail?

“If you didn’t want me to punch you, you shouldn’t have...whatever you just did...right in front of me!” she huffed, folding her arms and leaning into one hip.

“what kind of monster are you, anyway? i’ve never seen anyone like you before.”

“Monster? I’m not a monster!  _ You’re _ the monster! What kind of human walks around without any skin on his bones!? That’s just freaky! I mean, I’d heard the stories, but I never thought they were real-”

Sans’ soul stopped in his ribcage.

“wait - you’re a human!?”

“Yeah, so?”

Sans forced himself to slow his breathing.

“how’d you...how’d you  _ get _ down here?”

The girl turned a little pink in the face. “I was hiking up the mountain with my family and I slipped and fell down a hole. I didn’t think it would go so far down! But thankfully, I was able to grab the wall before I fell too far, and I climbed most of the way down. I’m lucky I’ve got good arm strength! Otherwise I would have totally bit the dust!”

“bit whose dust, exactly?” Sans immediately raised his guard, taking another step away from the girl. He started feeling a little queasy. He’d never seen or met a human before - at least not that he could remember - but he knew the stories about them. Humans were dangerous. Even the kids.

The girl stopped, looking confused.

“It’s an expression. Y’know...like…” then suddenly, a look of realisation lit her eyes. She turned very pale. “Oh my god…” She looked down at her hands. Her fingers were poking out of black, fingerless gloves. Black fingerless gloves covered in a white powdery substance. “Oh my god…”

Sans felt like he was going to be sick for real now. “You... _ ate _ a monster’s dust?”

“...What? Wait, no!  _ No _ I didn’t, I  _ swear _ ! It’s a human expression. It literally just means dying! But...” She looked like she was on the verge of tears. Sans, for one, was relieved, though.

“I didn’t know that you guys turned to dust when you  _ died _ …” She looked down, hugging herself. “I’m - I’m so sorry! I didn’t - I didn’t k-know! I didn’t know!” A hiccup escaped her throat as she began crying.

Sans didn’t know what to do at first. This was a lot to take in. The myths were true. Even a human child was capable of killing. But this human had clearly had no idea.

“h-hey, kiddo, c’mon. it’s...it’s alright. as long as ya didn’t mean it. c’mere.” He held his arms out and beckoned her over.

What was he  _ doing _ ?

Before he had the chance to change his mind there was a body wrapped around his own. The girl was sobbing now, making a real mess of his jacket. He put his arms around her, massaging her back.

“I thought I was doing the right thing! I was just wandering around, trying to find a way out, and- and they kept attacking me! I didn’t know what else to do! I was all alone! I was so scared!”

“hey, that’s alright, kid. it’s alright.”

“I didn’t think that they wouldn’t be able to come back...b-but they’re gone, aren’t they?”

Sans thought for a moment.

“yeah,” he finally said. “yeah, they’re not coming back. a monster’s body doesn’t have enough physical matter to support a body without a soul. so once you take the soul, there’s nothing left but a pile of dust…”

This only made her cry harder. Whoops.

“b-but! euhhh...when a monster turns to dust, their dust can be spread on their favorite thing, so that they can kinda ‘live on’ in that thing!”

This seemed to calm her down some.

“yeah, so...when their friends find them, they can give them a proper funeral! and it’s not even like they’ll know what happened.”

The girl sniffled and looked at him, blue eyes now tinged with red.

“I still feel really bad...I wished I’d known...but I couldn’t find anyone in those ruins who wouldn’t either attack me or run away.” She wiped a runny nose with the sleeve of her shirt. “I was just really scared.”

“wow, you got all the way here from the ruins? that’s a long way! And all by yourself?” Sans said, tousling her hair. “y’know, i think that takes a lotta guts.”

Another sniff. “You think so?”

“well, yeah! i dunno how much you know about us monsters down here, but i’ll bet it wasn’t much. after all, it’s...been awhile...since we had a human down here.”

The girl finally let go of Sans’ jacket. “Really?” she asked.

“you’re probably the first one in...gee, several years at least!”

“...Whoa…” came the reply. Then she shivered.

“hey, you look chilled  _ to the bone _ !” That got a little laugh. “why don’t i take you someplace warm, hunh?”

“Uh, s-sure. That’d be really nice of you, mister...uh…”

“sans. sans the skeleton. pleasure to meet you!” Sans held out his hand.

The girl smiled, taking it with hers and giving it a small shake.

“Everybody calls me Jack,” she said.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sans digs his hole a little deeper.

This was wrong.

What had he gotten himself into!? Sans did his best to keep up the appearance that everything was fine, but for pete’s sake there was a  _ human being _ walking next to him! He had just made friends with the enemy. Invited them to come further into the Underground. He should have left her there; gotten Greatest Dog or something. But she’d been so alone...Sans couldn’t pretend he didn’t know how that felt. And now that she knew how...how dust worked...there was no way she could be a threat.

But Asgore would want her.

No, not her. Her  _ soul _ . Sans grinned at his new friend outwardly, but inside he was screaming.

Nothing about this was a good idea. Why couldn’t someone else have found her?

“hey, so...we’re getting close to town.”

“Town? There’s a town down here?”

“yeah, there’re actually quite a few. but this one’s called snowdin.”

“Oh...I’d always thought you guys just lived in burrows or...made nests or something…”

Sans couldn’t help but laugh. “we’re not dumb animals, kiddo. whaddya take me for, a squirrel? not that i’m  _ afraid _ of heights or anything but i can’t really see myself living in a tree.”

“Sorry,” Jack laughed, blushing a little. “I...guess I don’t know much about monsters. I didn’t offend you, did I?” Jack was blushing now.

“nah, you’re fine. we’ve uh...been trapped down here for a long time. i wouldn’t expect you humans to have all the facts anymore.” Sans couldn’t help but frown a little. Odds were high that this kid’s perception of history was probably a bit different than his own.

He looked up at the trees around them. They were beginning to thin out; get a little smaller. They really were getting close. Sans was going to have to figure out what to do with this kid. They couldn’t just waltz into town...could they? Jack’s voice cut through his thoughts.

“Yeah, I guess so...we have a brief unit in our history courses in school, I guess, but mostly it just covers the war and...the barrier thing or whatever?”

“so you guys call it the barrier still, too, hunh?” Sans shot her a half-hearted smile. “eh, that makes sense i guess. kinda hard to write a history about a group that hasn’t been seen in, like, forever.”

Silence wedged itself between the two as they walked, broken only by the occasional chatter of the kid’s teeth. Finally, Jack spoke up.

“Sans?”

“mm?” he grunted. He could already tell where this was going by the tone of her voice.

“You...weren’t around when the Barrier was made...were you?”

Sans came to a halt. He knew where he had to take this conversation, but he didn’t want to.

“nope,” he finally answered. “‘m too young for that. that happened a  _ long _ time ago. i don’t think there are many monsters left that were around at the time. i’ve heard of a few who were there. there’s an old tortoise that likes to tell stories to kids when he can remember them. but...i think that generation’s pretty much gone.”

“So you’ve...never seen the sun before?”

She just  _ had _ to ask that question, didn’t she?

Sans chuckled sadly. “i’m afraid i haven’t, kiddo.”

Jack got quiet. Looked down at the ground.

“but hey...maybe...maybe someday i’ll get to, eh? king’s got a plan-”

“King?”

Here we go.

“uh...yeah. the king. king asgore. he, uh...he thinks he might know how to break the barrier. from our side, that is. but…”

“But maybe it’d be easier if it was broken from  _ our _ side!” Jack exclaimed. I could go back up there and tell everyone that you guys are still down here! That we need to make amends! We could break the Barrier and let you all out!”

“well, yeah, that would probably be easier, but i dunno if anything can get back out once it’s gotten in.”

Should he tell her about the king’s angry decree? Most definitely yes. So why couldn’t Sans bring himself to say it? This girl was in more and more danger every minute she spent down here! But if the rumors were true, nothing could get out through that Barrier unless its soul was powerful enough. What the heck was he going to do now?

“hey i think i see the town up ahead,” he said, changing the subject. Perhaps he could give this a little more thought later. For now he needed to get her somewhere safe. “but, uh...we need to lay down some ground rules before we go in.”

Jack shivered a little again, but said nothing, looking at him expectantly.

“for one thing, let me do the talking, kay? i know the people in this town pretty well, and i also know some of them can be pretty nosy. but i’ll make sure we get what we need without too much hassle.”

“Why would they be nosy? Don’t you guys ever get visitors?”

“well, yeah, but not from the  _ surface _ .” Sans said, trying not to grit his teeth. This was a horrible idea.

“so for another thing...basically i’m kinda thinking it would be wise of us to not bring attention to the fact that you’re a human for now.”

“Why? Wouldn’t people be excited?”

“well,” Sans tugged at the collar of his jacket for a moment. “no offense, but  _ my _ history classes kinda taught me to fear humans. i don’t think you realise how powerful you are compared to us. even a kid as young as you can wipe out-”

Jack was looking a little uncomfortable.

“-uh, yeah...guess you kinda figured that one out on your own, hunh?” Whoops. “a-anyway, i just don’t think it would be a good idea to announce the arrival of a human to a bunch of people who grew up learning to be scared of them. so, um...actually! here!”

Sans stepped out of the slippers he forgot to change before heading out and took off his socks. He gave them a sniff and held them out to the human with a somewhat apologetic look.

“What?”

“put ‘em on.”

“Like, on my feet?”

Sans stepped back into his slippers. “nah, i was thinking more like over your ears or something.”

“EW! No way am I doing that! Those came off your feet!” Jack gave them a sniff and cringed. “When did you last wash these anyway!?”

Sans sighed. “look, kid, sorry, i was supposed to do laundry today. but-” should he tell her about Papyrus? Or would it be safer for everyone if no one knew about each other. Papyrus had a tendency to get a little...attached…to anyone he met. And besides, he  _ was _ training to be in the Royal Guard; that could spell trouble. It would probably be safer for now if he didn’t.

“-i’m a bit of a  _ lazybones _ . but i figure this is as a good a disguise as i can give you right now. there’s lots of bunnies in snowdin. you hang those socks from your bandana thing and you’ll...sorta look like a bunny.

Jack looked at the socks in her hand, eyebrows knitting together in a scowl. “Okay, fine. But I don't see how anyone is going to be fooled by a couple of socks.”

“you’d be surprised,” Sans replied, hoping he was right. Most everybody in Snowdin at least had never seen a human before. So maybe they could slip by without too many questions. Sans steeled himself and took the lead as they approached the first couple of buildings.

Unfortunately, it was evening. The snow-covered streets of the town were teeming with monsters, many on their way home from work.

Which reminded him. Dinner.

Sans palmed his skull. “awe man, i can’t believe i almost forgot! we gotta grab some things before we head home. remember: let me do all the talking, kay?”

The girl beside him nodded. It was only then that Sans realised how blue her lips had gotten.

“whoa, you okay? you look chilled to the  _ bone _ !” Sans shrugged his jacket off while he inwardly chided himself for forgetting one of the most basic rules of etiquette. She’d been shivering the whole way into town! How could he have not registered that until now!?

“T-t-thanks, Sans. I-i-it’s a little cold here!”

“heh, well in case you haven't figured it out yet, i’m not the most observant person. next time just say something. i don’t want you freezing to death on my account!” Sans winked. “kay, get ready. we’re gonna duck in here for a minute,” he said, turning to open the door to Snowdin’s most popular shop.

“How the heck is this jacket so  _ warm _ ? You’ve got no skin or blood!”

“magic,” he quipped without looking back. “now shut up.” Now it was  _ his _ turn to feel cold. Time to go inside.

“Haha, that’s a good one- you’re joking right? What’s the real answer?”

“for once, i’m not. now  _ shh _ !” Sans pushed her inside and shut the cold out behind them.

“Hey y’all,” came the call from the back of the store. “Sans? My goodness, is that you?”

Across the room, leaning against the front of the checkout counter was a large rabbit with a droopy hat and even droopier eyes, dressed in nothing but a tank top and capris despite the perpetually cold weather outside. But then rabbits were pretty good at keeping warm. She pushed herself up and walked over to meet them, twirling a candy cane between her fingers.

“hey, petal. ‘s’good to see you. i need to get some stuff for dinner tonight.”

Jack was looking all around the store in awe. But thankfully she was staying quiet.

“And who’s your lovely friend, here?” The large rabbit asked.

“oh, more like a friend of a friend or something like that. she’s stayin’ with me for a bit while she passes through. she’s on her way to…to...the capital...to visit family.” Sans hoped and prayed he could pass this off.

“Well ain’t that just wonderful! What’s your name, sweetheart?”

Jack looked up at the bunny, a little caught off guard. She shot a quick glance at Sans for approval before clearing her throat. “Jack. My name is Jack, ma’am.”

Petal bent down to give her a hug and the candy cane. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, miss Jack. No, no, keep it, darlin’. It’s yours!” Then she turned to look at Sans. “So what do you need for tonight, honey?”

“y’know that veggie soup i used to make all the time? yeah that one. i need stuff for that tonight. o-oh and maybe a couple o’ cinnamon bunnies for after, too.”

“Sure thing!” she winked at him before disappearing into the back part of the store. Sans could feel the tension in his scapulae ease.

“That is one  _ big _ bunny!” Jack piped up, inspecting a collection of surface-world keychains. “Hey, Texas! That’s where I’m from!” She picked up the keychain and twirled it a few times. “Where I come from, bunnies are small. Like, _ super _ small. And they don’t talk.”

“well, i imagine skeletons don’t either. ‘s a different world down here,” Sans replied, trying to peer into the doorway Petal and gone through. Before Jack could respond, the large bunny returned, a couple of sacks in her beefy arms.

“Here you are, honey. That everything for you tonight?”

“sure is, ma’am. thanks a ton!”

“That’ll be 50G, then.”

Sans handed the bags off to his companion and dug in his pants pocket for his wallet. He counted out the fee and ushered the kid out the door.

He turned to wave before following her out. “thanks again, petal. you’re the best.”

“Anytime, Sans,” Petal replied, returning to her spot in front of the counter. “And Sans?”

“yeah?”

“That poor girl doesn’t need your socks  _ anywhere _ near her face.”

Sans laughed nervously. “she, uh...she insisted her ears were cold…”

Time to make his exit. He could hear Petal laughing as he closed the door behind him. Man, that cold air suddenly felt  _ really  _ refreshing!

“What’s wrong with  _ you _ ?” Jack asked, scrutinizing him.

“you can take the socks off if you want.”

She looked confused for a moment. Then she laughed.

“Thanks, Sans. I was starting to get a little light-headed there!”

“hey, c’mon, they’re not  _ that _ bad, are they?” He grinned, taking the socks back.

“Let’s just say having these socks in my face is worse than getting socked in the face!” she winked.

Sans laughed. “good one, kid.”

~ ~ ~

They reached the house just as the last rays of light from above faded away.

“Wow, it sure gets dark down here…” Jack said in a small voice. “...and I thought it was dark before...”

Sans said nothing. He was too busy wondering how the heck he was going to explain coming home several hours late. And with a complete stranger. The whole way home, no one had screamed, “a human! A human!” which was a plus. But if word got out that Jack  _ was _ a human, they’d both be in some serious trouble.

“okay, uh…so just so you know, my little brother lives with me. he’s pretty...um, he can be kinda weird at first. but i promise he’s cool.”

“You have a brother!? That’s awesome!” Jack’s eyes lit up. “I have one, too! Actually a couple! But they’re all older than me.” Her face fell a little. “...I’ll bet they’re beginning to wonder where I am…”

Sans shifted uncomfortably. He really needed to tell her the truth about Asgore. But he just couldn’t bring himself to do it. “i’m sure they are,” was all he could finally force out.

Suddenly, the front door flew open, flooding the front step with warm light.

“SANS! THERE YOU ARE! I WAS BEGINNING TO WONDER IF I SHOULD GO OUT AND LOOK FOR YO- WHO’S THIS?”

Welp. Too late to come up with any plans.

“hey paps, sorry, i...got a little sidetracked...this is jack. she’s just passing through. needs a place to stay for the night. ‘s’that okay?”

“YOU MADE A FRIEND!? SANS, YOU MADE A FRIEND! I’M SO PROUD OF YOU! GET IN HERE, BOTH OF YOU!” Papyrus whisked them inside.

“PLEASE, JACK, MAKE YOURSELF RIGHT AT HOME- OR, AT LEAST, THE PARTS OF HOME THAT DON’T BELONG TO ME OR SANS. OH GOODNESS, I WISH YOU WOULD HAVE CALLED, BROTHER; I COULD HAVE CLEANED UP A LITTLE! I HAD NO IDEA WE WERE HAVING A GUEST!”

“the place looks fine, papyrus. heh. any cleaner and you probably wouldn’t let me in!”

“THAT’S JUST THE SORT OF THING  _ YOU _ WOULD SAY...IT’S A PIGSTY IN HERE! AND I COULD HAVE SHOWN OFF MY AMAZING CULINARY SKILLS-”

“- _ that! _ won’t be necessary,” Sans butted in before Papyrus had the chance to get any dangerous ideas. “i got the stuff. so we can have our soup. remember?” He cast a sidelong glance at the kid. She look slightly bewildered, but amused. That was usually about average for meeting Papyrus the first time.

“OH. RIGHT. WELL, JACK, YOU WILL SIMPLY  _ HAVE _ TO SEE IF YOU CAN STAY ANOTHER NIGHT. THEN YOU CAN TRY MY FAMOUS SPAGHETTI!”

“That sounds wonderful!” Jack replied, looking to Sans for guidance as Papyrus took her hand in both of his and vigorously shook it. Sans smiled and shrugged. If she stayed long enough, she’d learn sooner than later.

“welp, i’m gonna make this soup, kay? if you wanted, paps, you could take this opportunity to clean up the house some.”

“AN EXCELLENT IDEA, BROTHER! THE GREAT PAPYRUS SHALL DO JUST THAT!”

Papyrus ran off to the broom closet. Sans jerked his head in the direction of the kitchen. “c’mon. we’ve got some soup to make.”

They headed into the kitchen, the sounds of Papyrus singing at the top of his metaphorical lungs blasting from around corner. The vacuum did little to drown him out.

“so whaddya think of my bro?” he asked as he began taking ingredients out of the sacks. “oh, hey; do you wanna grab me a pot from under the sink? thanks.”

“He’s...interesting, to say the least…” Jack replied, coming over with a dented stock pot. “-Wow, your sink is tall! -I like him, though. He seems very confident.”

“yeah, if there was ever a word to describe paps, it would probably be ‘confident.’” Sans chuckled. “i’m pretty proud of how he turned out. i know of no one who’s braver and kinder than he is. heh. he hasn’t got a bad  _ bone _ in his body! hand me those carrots, will ya?”

Jack laughed and obliged.

“Has he always been like this?” she asked. Sans gave her a knife and an onion.

“for the most part, yeah. hey, can you stir while i add this stuff?” he replied, peeling a potato. “he used to be pretty self-conscious. honestly i think he still is; he’s just gotten really good at hiding it. he always wants to make everyone happy, y’know?”

“That reminds me of Louis - he’s the one closest to my age,” Jack’s eyes fell a little, a wistful smile pulling halfheartedly at the corners of her mouth. “He’s never had too many close friends, but that’s all he’s ever wanted. He just wants to be liked by everyone. He’s the nicest person I know…”

The stirring stopped. She stared at the floor.

Sans put down his potato. “hey, c’mon, it’s alright. i’m...i’m sure you’ll see him again. heh. and in the meantime, you can share papyrus with me, if you want!” he winked. Jack laughed a little at that.

“Yeah...that sounds good,” she smiled at him and resumed her stirring. “You know what would go  _ really _ good in this soup? A little bit of green chili.”

“i’ll bet you’re right, kiddo. too bad i don’t have any...or...know what that  _ is _ !”

They both laughed. this kid wasn’t bad at all. Nothing like the history books made her out to be. Sans could feel the chains growing heavier as they laughed. He was going to have to tell her the truth eventually. But for now?

Eh, no reason to ruin a good moment, right?


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sans has a dream.

They had set her up on their lumpy, green couch. Papyrus had made sure to smother her with at least five of the fluffiest, least hole-y blankets they had.

“Don’t freak out if you wake up in the middle of the night and Papyrus is suddenly there. He doesn’t sleep much, and he has early shifts at his work,” he’d warned her before heading upstairs and flopping onto his own mattress.

Despite how tired he was, Sans found it a little difficult to get to sleep. Everytime he managed to close his eye sockets, they’d fly open in a panic as he fought off visions of his latest houseguest getting run through by someone’s bullets. If anyone found out there was a human in the Underground...if  _ Asgore _ found out…

He supposed Asgore could still potentially rescind his decree. But the boss monster was usually true to his word. Still, the king had never struck Sans as the type to kill in cold blood…

He rubbed his face and heaved a great sigh. Was he just feeling things, or had those little grooves under his sockets gotten deeper today?

~

A prodding sensation on his humerus dragged Sans out of a dreamless sleep. He groaned, waving his arm about in the intruder’s general direction without opening his eyes.

“‘ey, leemee alone,” he muttered and rolled over.

After a moment, the prodding returned. This time with much greater force.

“ow! stop that, will ya?” he growled. Sans curled in on himself tighter and squeezed his eyes shut.

Just as he was about to drift off again, something hard and plastic-feeling slammed itself against the side of his skull. Sans shot up.

“i said  _ stop _ !” he raged, rubbing his aching temple and glowering at…

Oh. It was Gaster.

His weapon of choice: that little radio. Sans barely had time to collect himself before the radio was practically thrown at him. His hands fumbled for a moment before he had a secure grip on the device. He turned it on, blinking the last of the sleep away, and started turning the dial from channel to channel. Gaster began his customary “testing” sounds.

At last, they landed on a good signal. It wasn’t entirely clear, but it would do.

“Sans!” the goopy man exclaimed through the static. “I’m so glad I finally got through to you again!

“yeah, man, what took you so long? it’s been, like, several months,” Sans replied drily.

“Sorry! I’m so sorry! I’ve been trying- you  _ have _ been holding onto that little bit of me, right?”

“yeah, of course. i’ve been dealing with enough crap lately. don’t need to add  _ losing my marbles _ to the list. heh.”

“Good. Okay. So then we know it’s not necessarily the marble that’s stopped working…” Gaster scowled down at the floor.

The...purple and blue...floor.

“kind of a weird place to meet up, don’t you think?” Sans piped up. “i mean, what’s so special about my room?”

Gaster looked up and around the small space, suddenly looking a little surprised. “Mmyes, I do suppose this is a rather strange location. I wish I could say.”

“does that mean you  _ can’t _ or you  _ won’t _ ?”

“I’m afraid I have no idea. I don’t have a whole lot of options available to me in the void on a  _ good _ day. I just wait for the right moments to try and break through, whenever - and  _ where _ ver - they may be. I’ve noticed they tend to be places not as heavily affected by the...by the incident. But I can’t quite pin down  _ why _ …”

“the ‘incident?’” Sans interjected. “what ‘incident?’”

Gaster looked a little like a deer in the headlights for a moment. “Oh, never you mind that, my boy. That’s a story for when you’re older!” He grinned and...winked? Probably? Eh, close enough. “Besides,” he continued. “We haven’t got much time.”

Sans looked up at the ceiling in frustration. “see, g, this is the problem. you hardly ever come to visit anymore and even when you do you never tell me anything actually  _ useful _ . heck, the last dream i had with you in it,  _ you _ weren’t even  _ in _ it! it was more like a bunch of memories or something? why can’t you just give it to me straight?”

Gaster looked thoroughly puzzled. “You dreamt of  _ my _ memories? Why didn’t you tell me sooner!”

“uh, maybe because you haven’t really been around to tell?” Sans shot back. But the scientist was already lost in thought, remnants of a brow furrowed in concentration.

“Astounding...I never would have thought...Sans how very intriguing this news is! I had no idea! What did you dream of?”

Sans shifted uncomfortably on his mattress. “uh...a human.”

Apparently it was possible for someone with a white face to go even whiter.

“Wha- what human, Sans!? Which human did you dream of!?”

“the first one, i think. i - i mean you - were visiting with them and taking their blood to study, and then it changed to me-  _ you _ telling me the human and the prince had died…besides, whaddya mean  _ which _ ? there’s only been  _ one _ human - until now.”

Gaster seemed to relax a little at this news. But then he straightened out again and began to pace the floor. Though “pace” was maybe a generous word to describe it.

“This is, indeed, very perplexing. Yes. Perhaps it has to do with my transfer of power to you in the void? Mm. Yes, maybe that’s it. Well, it doesn’t matter, now, anyway. Now that I’ve finally made it through again, I need to tell you some things! Yes, yes. Very important things. Oh dear, I fear we haven’t got much time left. This process, you see, is very draining for me.” gaster stopped his pacing and turned to face Sans again.

“First of all I must apologize for leaving you alone for so long. Believe me when I say I’ve been trying my hardest to get through again. But it’s harder than it looks. The connection points were much stronger earlier on, but I feel most of them fading even as we speak. I think it may have something to do with your brief exposure to the void. For awhile, there, we were able to both ride on those little ‘rips,’ as it were, in the spacetime continuum because we’d both been subjected to it. But with you having been out of the void for so long, you’re no longer as connected to them, I fear.

“so, like, it...wore off? or something? like sunblock is supposed to? ‘s’that what you’re saying?”

“Wha-yes! Why yes, that’s exactly the perfect metaphor to use! Thank you, Sans! The void’s effects are wearing off for you. These days, I hardly even feel  _ you _ when I’m looking. Mostly I just feel that marble and reach for that. But it’s not very strong. And sometimes it’s far away. And...I think giving you that piece of me is taking its toll on me…”

Gaster’s voice trailed away. For a moment, all that came between them in the tiny room was white noise.

Several static pops later, Sans cleared his metaphorical throat and pressed on.

“so, uh, what’s that supposed to mean, doc? don’t leave me hanging here.”

Gaster’s vision seemed to focus again. He shook his head a little, trying to clear the fog. “I’m sorry. yes, where was I? Oh yes. You see, that marble...that piece of me...the material world is probably not the safest environment for it. Especially for as long as it’s been here. It pulls at my magic in all the wrong ways. It has to take from the rest of me just to maintain…”

“you can’t exist in both worlds,” Sans summed up for him.

“Right. Exactly. It has to be one or the other. And for me...I do believe it will only ever be the other, now.”

There was a deep sadness in his voice as his gaze returned to the floor. Sans felt a pit in his stomach. To be stuck in that... _ nothingness _ for the rest of time! A fate worse than death! There could be no moving forward in that kind of a place. No moving backward either. Probably no moving at all.

“c’mon, g. don’t say that. maybe we can find a way to get you back here - where you belong!” Sans suggested. Gaster didn’t look up, but his head bobbed a little.

“...Yes...yes perhaps we could...if we worked together. But goodness, we can worry about this later! I can already feel the connection wavering. I don’t have much more time tonight. We must discuss more important matters! Like, for instance, the girl you have in your living room.”

Sans rubbed the back of his vertebrae. “uh, yeah. her name’s jack. she’s cool.”

“But, she’s human. The first human to come in quite some time.”

“yeah, i guess so.”

“Sans...I don’t know how to tell you this any other way so I’m just going to say it,” Gaster’s voice pitched a little. “The girl is going to die down here.”

Sans suddenly felt a little dizzy. “nope. nope. nope. she doesn’t deserve it. she won’t die.”

“You cannot change this. I’m sorry.”

“why not? i could- i could protect her. she could live with me. o-or maybe we could find another way through the barrier. she could help. she’s not gonna die.”

Gaster shook his head sadly. “This is so very much like you Sans. I always admired that about you. You get so easily attached. You’re so...loyal...even to the end.” He brought an amorphous hand to his head. “But you cannot stop this. I can’t see everything, or even make sense of all that I  _ do _ see, but in every timeline I’ve witnessed, there is no other end. This is inevitable. If...if it’s any consolation, I do believe she might be a part of a much grander scheme. I can’t work out how, but I do believe her importance will outlast her time here.”

“oh, yeah, that makes me feel com _ pletely _ better, thanks,” Sans retorted scowling. He refused to believe it. He could just keep her hidden. Or maybe they could go talk to the king and work things out. But of all the people who deserved to die, Jack was the last Sans could think of. No one deserved to die for simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time. He couldn’t look up at Gaster. Instead he studied his hands, rubbing his phalanges together.

“I’m sorry, Sans,” Gaster finally mumbled. “I see no alternate future for her-”

“-i don’t wanna hear it.” Sans cut in. “just...tell me whatever else you have to and let me get back sleeping.” He refused to look the goopy man in the eyes.

Gaster breathed in sharply, then let it out slow. “Alright, then. Just...try not to get your hope up.” He resumed his pacing. “Sans, I need your help to find something for me.”

“what kinda thing, doc?”

“I need you to find something in my old lab. A few things, actually. There are a couple of pieces of machinery that I need you to fix up and run some tests with since I cannot.”

Sans rolled his eyelights. “g, i gave up looking for that lab forever ago. ‘m too tired to run around looking for places that don’t exist anymore.”

“Believe me, it still exists. But I cannot inhabit the physical world. Not the same way you can.  _ You _ have to find it-” Gaster jabbed a...sort-of-finger at him as he began inspecting the things on Sans’ dresser. “-Is this my old file?”

Sans was confused for a moment before he remembered the manila folder he’d left there...was it three weeks ago or four now?

“oh, yeah. yeah i haven’t really touched it in awhile. it’s a little hard to read y’know.”

“So you haven’t gotten very far, hm?” Gaster responded, fixing him with an intense stare.

“euh, no. haven’t really gotten passed the third page.”

“Good.”

Good?  _ Good? _ What the heck was that supposed to mean? Sans flipped it open to the first page. His key was stuck under the paper clip where the file photo would have been.

“Sans I-” Gaster began. “...just…” he sighed. “Just feel free to take as long as you need. I suppose you’ll get through it sooner or later. But...there are some things in there that- might alarm you. Just...be warned.”

“what kinds of things?”

“You’ll find out, I’m sure. After all, you’re smart. And very resourceful!” Gaster attempted another wink. “Now. About the other thing I needed to tell you. With the arrival of this girl, I believe that things are about to start getting a little more complicated for the Underground. If my theories are correct, this is the beginning of a series of events that will change the world. But in order to confirm it, I need  _ you _ to run some tests. We have to be sure of the direction we’re taking, or else the results could be catastrophic!” Gaster’s hands were flying everywhere now.

“catastrophic? what could be so bad about a little girl?” Sans ventured.

“Not her, necessarily, but as I said she is only the beginning. Most likely. Gah, I hate not being able to test this myself! Please, Sans, will you do this for me? I need to know if what I’ve been seeing is true.”

Sans thought for a moment. What he’d said about giving up forever ago wasn’t a lie. There was so much else on his plate right now, and every lead he thought he’d found had always turned out to be another dead end anyway. But the look on the doctor’s face...how could he say no to that!? He sighed and shrugged, “i’ll do my best.”

Gaster’s eyes lit up. “Oh you will!? Oh, thank you, thank you! This means the universe to me!”

“-but! you gotta help me find it, if you can, okay?”

“I can’t make any promises, there, but if I can find a way to get through and help you, believe me I will!” Oh, I’ll feel so much more at ease when we can run these tests and discover the truth!”

Sans brought a hand to his forehead. His head was beginning to hurt a little.

“well, doc, if that’s all you have for me today, can we call it now? i’ve already missed out on a skele _ ton _ of sleep lately, and i’ve got work tomorrow morning.”

Gaster was, in fact, already beginning to phase in and out of view. One moment his hand would disappear. The next moment the top of his head would be floating three feet to the right of him. Almost like a glitch.

“Y-yes, I suppose it is time to say goodbye for now. I really am sorry for keeping you from your sleep. I know these dreams are draining for you just as much as they are for me...” His gaze dropped to the carpet again and he looked a little fearful again, eyes darting from stripe to stripe as he studied the zigzag pattern on the floor.

“kay. g’night,” Sans said, pushing down a twinge of guilt. He could only imagine what it must be like to be stuck somewhere so...so lonely...with no idea of when you could next get out. If you could get out at all.

“hey.”

Gaster looked up again, eyes looking a little glassier than before.

“i’ll see ya next time, okay?” Sans held the marble up and put on his best reassuring smile. Gaster hesitantly smiled back. Then, suddenly, he was gone. The room was dark and empty. The radio in Sans’s hand crackled with white noise. He sighed and turned to lay back down.

A sudden beeping startled him awake. He groaned.

Back to work.

~

A thin, watery glow was trickling down from the cavern ceiling above as Sans walked towards the tunnels of Waterfall. He had briefly considered just teleporting to work, but he figured that since he’d gotten up on time for once, he could use the time to collect his thoughts - and maybe wake up a little more properly than usual.

Jack had still been asleep when he left. He’d hastily scribbled a note and left it by her pillow: “hey kiddo. had to go to work. stay inside til i get back. leftover soup in the fridge. keep away from the spaghetti if you have any respect for your stomach. tv remote’s probably somewhere in the couch cushions. see you around 5. -sans.”

Sans made his way through the twinkling tunnels of Waterfall, only passing the occasional monster. As he ambled, his mind spun. The dream he’d had was a little fuzzy around the edges, but he could still remember how urgently the doctor had insisted he find the old lab.

And he could remember what he’d said about Jack.

He dug his hands into his pants pockets, immediately curling his fingers around the marble. His grip tightened as his mind started rapid-firing all the ways things could go wrong. All the ways a person could die. His soul began to pound in his chest and he clutched the marble so hard his fingers were beginning to hurt.

It just wasn’t fair. Gaster had to be wrong.

Sans was going to make sure of it.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sans makes it to work on time for once. Also, garbage piles are apparently great places for deep conversations.
> 
> This may be the last update for a good long while because now not only am I working on my Robin Hood book, but also _another_ book for a class I'm taking this semester, and I'm probably going to have to pour all my energy into those at least until that class is over in April 2018. So just a heads up (as if I wasn't already posting about as quickly as Thundersnail can crawl), I have not abandoned this fic, but it will more or less be on an _official_ hiatus for the next while. Thanks for your patience, and I assure you that every email I get informing me someone has left a kudos on my work even though I'm not updating often enough to really deserve them makes me inordinately happy!
> 
> ~Nat

Sans arrived at work to a scene of chaos. There were monsters everywhere in the main common area. Most of them carrying boxes of stuff, and most of them looking rather put out. One tall snake monster slithered past him, bags brimming with equipment slung around her neck.

“Excusssssse me, Dear,” she said. She cast him a tired, apologetic glance before turning again toward the door.

Sans saw a familiar figure across the room, slowly going over a pile of stuff, placing some in one box, some in another. It was Dr. Martin “Meticulous” Matterhorn, so-nicknamed for - well - exactly what he was doing right now. Sans crossed the large room and came up behind him.

“hey, marty,” Sans did his best to sound cheery as he joined him at his table. “what’s uh...what’s going on here? looks to me like a bunch of people just got laid off.”

The dragon monster heaved a deep sigh, not bothering to look up. His claws continued their methodical work, delicately placing a microscope in the box labelled “breakables.”

“Good morning, Sans.” He did not sound convinced that it was a good morning at all. “You aren’t far off the mark, I’m afraid. Luckily it isn’t a layoff. But it would seem I and the rest of the microbiology team are going to be relocating.”

“what!?” Sans was shocked! An entire division? Leaving the Labs? This was unheard of!

“I was against it from the start, mind you,” Martin continued. “I don’t want to move. But most of the rest of the team voted for leaving. We’ve been having an increasing number of issues with...um... _ you-know-who _ .” At this last part, his neck bent low and and his voice bent lower. His gaze shifted around behind them a moment before returning to his task.

“you-know-who?” Sans asked, bringing his voice down to match Martin’s. Martin looked at him in disbelief. A hard glint entered his eye.

“That lizard that calls herself ‘Royal Scientist,’” he snorted.

_ Alphys _ ? Alphys was the cause of this?

“y’mean dr. alphys is making you leave?”

“ _ Making _ ? Ha! No. It would be easier for me to leave if that were the case. No, she isn’t  _ making _ us leave, per se; it’s only that she is absolutely the most incompetent leader I’ve ever worked under. After the past few months of trying to do things  _ her _ way (and I’m not even sure  _ she _ knows what her way is), our team took a vote and decided it would be best for everyone if we took our work elsewhere. We’re breaking away from the Royal Laboratories. Seceding. Branching off. I have worked for these laboratories for 80 years and more. I have seen us make so many advances in the name of science and magic. But this past year, I fear we have taken “more steps  _ back _ than we have forward. We aren’t making any progress here, Sans. We need somewhere where we can run independent of unsurety and apprehension. That is not how science is done! One must be  _ bold! _ ”

His fist pounded the table, not enough to shake it, but just enough to make his point. Precise as always. The moment of passion passed, and now Martin was once again droopy, inspecting his things and placing them accordingly.

Sans was very confused. And concerned. He needed to find Alphys and hear her side of the story. Martin didn’t even seem to notice when he said his goodbyes and left him to his sorting.

As he wandered through the halls, he could hear disgruntled conversations from every lab, every break room, and every classroom. Even the janitors seemed to know what was going on and had something to say about their Royal Scientist. Sans was getting increasingly uncomfortable as he made his way to her office.

“alph?” he called out as he knocked on the door, labelled “Dr. Alphys: Royal Scientist” in gold lettering. To his surprise the door inched open under his knuckles. He peered in and saw...a huge mess. Alphys was nowhere to be found. “al, where are you?”

Sans entered the dark room. There were candy wrappers and instant noodle cups all over the tables, shelves, chairs. Even her desk was a mess of illegibly-written notes and unsigned forms, blueprints awaiting approval, and a single half finished drawing of a girl in a school uniform with short, pink hair. Her too-long arms were hidden strategically behind her back, from behind which poked a massive sword. She was missing one eye - or rather, where the second one should be there were instead layers and layers of obviously erased lines. There was a slight tear at the bottom corner of the page. Sans had to laugh. It reminded him too much of when he was working up blueprints for a new project. Fun enough to do, but it usually frustrated him. It always looked better in his head.

He continued further in the room. “alphys. it’s me, sans. are you in here?” he called again, just to make sure. That was when he noticed a sliver of light near the floor at the far wall. He tiptoed over a pile of crumpled papers and wrappers to the other door, and held his breath, listening. There was no sound. He tried the knob. Found it locked.

“alph?” he tried one last time. “you in there?”

No answer. Sans sighed. She could be anywhere, then.

He was just about to reach the office door when he heard a muffled, “S-sans?” He turned around. There was a soft click at the door he’d just left and it opened to reveal Alphys, looking very small, very distraught, and very tired. Her lab coat and business attire underneath were both wrinkled and stained. she looked like she probably hadn’t emerged from that back room in at least a week.

“wow, alphys. you look...erm...tired…” Sans really didn’t know what to say. She looked terrible! How had he not even noticed until now that she was struggling so much? How could he have been so self-absorbed as to not realize it had been several months since he’d even last seen her!?

“H-hey, Sans,” she said, sheepishly. Her voice sounded stuffy, as if she was getting over a cold. In the darkness, Sans could just make out reddened, frightened eyes looking at him. She seemed even more hunched over than usual. “S-sorry it’s so, um, dark in here…” She flipped a switch on the wall beside her and the war-zone was illuminated in a harsh fluorescence. Now Sans could clearly see the dark circles under her eyes. Her scales were dull, too, and a few of them even seemed to be sticking out at odd angles.

“so...i just came in this morning to see the entire microbiology team moving their stuff…”

“Uh, hehe, y-yeah...about...that…”

Alphys suddenly broke into tears.

“I’m sorry, I’m- I’m s-sorry, I’m so sorry!”

Sans panicked. Not knowing what else to do, he came closer and wrapped her in a hug. Together they melted to the floor of the dirty office. Alphys was sobbing uncontrollably now.

“hey, hey, it’s okay, don’t apologize to me. you didn’t even do anything!”

“B-but I did! Sans I’m t-the reason they all w-want to leave! I’m a horrible leader. I’m a horrible Royal Scientist! I c-can’t do this! E-everyone’s counting on me a-a-and it’s just too much pressure! I’m f-falling apart!”

Sans really didn’t know what to say. He knew she had the tendency to be hard on herself, but at the same time, what could you say when her sentiments matched the rest of the facility’s? So he just sat there for awhile and hugged her, letting her wet his button-up with her tears.

Eventually, she calmed down. Pulled herself away from him and a used napkin out of one of her pockets. She blew hard, hiccuped twice and took a deep breath, then just stared at the floor.

“alphys, i’m...i’m so sorry. i didn’t realize you were having so much trouble with this. i should have tried to come and find you sooner. but i just assumed you were busy...running...the place…” That...might not have been the best thing to say. Alphys sniffled and a few new tears trickled down her snout, making little dark spots on her slacks.

“you could’ve come and talked to me, al. i could have been helping you this whole time.”

Alphys remained silent. she rubbed her nose with the hem of her sleeve, still studying the floor in front of her.

“T-thanks, Sans, but it’s, uh, it’s too late,” she finally said. “I’ve already gotten word from at least five of the other d-departments that they’re p-planning on leaving this week alone. Microbiology was just the first to do it is all…”

Sans suddenly felt cold. What about his departments? Were they planning on leaving, too?

“how...how many?” he asked quietly, afraid if he spoke any louder reality itself might shatter. “how many are breaking away?”

Alphys’ eyes were dry now, but her hands were shaking. Her eyes met his at last. They were dull and lifeless.

“All of them.”

Sans took a shuddering breath.

“B-but, only a few are leaving right n-now. If...um...if it m-makes you feel any better, your departments are both hopefully going to b-be around for a couple more months at least…”

The walls seemed to close in around them. Sans had worked his whole life for a spot in the Royal Laboratories and now they were all but dissolving. Would he continue to work with the new start-up company? Of course. As long as they took him. He needed the money after all, and especially these days he wasn’t good for much else in the world. But it wouldn’t be the same. It wouldn’t be  _ the _ Royal Laboratories. And what would become of Alphys?

“man, i’m so sorry, alph.”

“...It’s okay, Sans. It’s n-not your fault anyway...and I guess on the plus side I’ll h-have the whole place to myself, hehe…” She sighed and absently traced a pattern on her knee with her claw. “I just...couldn’t h-handle the r-responsibility, I guess…”

~

The lights were on in the house. Sans let himself in, doing his best to leave his heavy feelings out in the snow.

“BROTHER! YOU’RE HOME! JACK AND I HAVE BEEN GETTING TO KNOW EACH OTHER WHILE WE WAITED FOR YOUR RETURN!”

Sans plastered his best good-natured smile on his face before looking up. Jack gave a little wave from behind his brother.

“DID YOU KNOW SHE HAS A BIG BROTHER, TOO?” Papyrus barrelled on. “TWO, IN FACT! ISN’T THAT WONDERFUL, SANS? IT’S LIKE SHE HAS TWICE THE BROTHER TO TAKE CARE OF!”

Jack laughed a little at this. “How was work, Sans? Papyrus told me you work at ‘The Royal Laboratories?’”

Sans ignored the heaviness trying to creep back in. “uh, yeah. i’m a scientist there. it was...it was good.” To avoid having to answer any more questions about it, he changed the subject. “how was your day, kiddo? didn’t get too bored, did you?”

Jack shook her head. “I didn’t even wake up until after noon.” She blushed a little. “I guess I was pretty tired.”

“eh, well, travelling...as far as you have...would do that to ya i suppose. you’re a girl after my own heart, though. ‘f’it were up to me i’d still be sleeping!” This time his grin was genuine. He crossed the living room and made for the kitchen to see if there were anymore snacks left.

“NOT IF  _ I  _ HAD ANYTHING TO DO WITH IT, MIND YOU,” Papyrus chimed in, a scowl crossing his face.

“what can i say? it’s always been a  _ dream _ of mine to sleep all day long!” That got a groan from his brother and a giggle from the girl. Rooting around in one of the cupboards, he found a half a bag of chips and turned with a much lighter feeling in his chest. At least for now, maybe he could just forget about his troubles at work.

“so whaddya wanna do tonight?” he asked her.

“Well...I was kind of wondering if you could show me around the Underground,” she replied, shoving her hands in her pockets. “I’d do it by myself, but...y’know...didn’t want to get lost or something.”

“MIGHT I STATE FOR THE RECORD THAT I OFFERED TO SHOW HER ALL MY FAVORITE PLACES, STARTING WITH OUR VERY OWN HOUSE, BUT SHE SAID SHE WANTED YOU TO DO IT. I THINK SHE MAY HAVE A FAVORITE NEW BROTHER.”

Sans laughed. “sure kid,” he went over to the closet and tossed her one of Papyrus’ old childhood coats. “we can go for a walk. i need to ask you what your plans are, anyway.”

With a “sack dinner” in each of their hands and a wave from Papyrus, they were off within 15 minutes.

“so what do you wanna see?” he asked.

“Everything!” Jack replied, breath making little white puffs around her face.

“slow down, kiddo; the underground may be small, but it’s not  _ that _ small! how about we start with waterfall, then we can head back around and hit up grillby’s for dinner.”

The girl nodded, adjusting her coat against the chill of the cavern.

For awhile, they just walked, watching as the snow gradually gave way to bare rock and dirt in the face of a warmer, more humid kind of air. Occasionally Jack would ask a question about this or that and Sans would oblige. By the time, they reached waterfall, the bag of chips Sans had hidden in his pocket was gone and their dinners were cold.

“i’ll take you as far as the dump today. that way we can get rid of this stuff where papyrus can’t see.”

“Why, exactly do we have to get rid of it again? I love spaghetti!” She opened the bag and buried her face in it, only to come up a second later gagging. “That does  _ not _ smell like spaghetti.”

“well, then, you have your answer,” Sans laughed, taking the bag from her. “he’s been learning how to cook from a friend, but...eh he’s still got a long way to go.

They passed only a few monsters as they wandered the tunnels of waterfall. Jack had long since handed her borrowed coat back to Sans. As they continued, she asked more and more questions, some about their present surroundings, others about the Underground in general.

“Sans?” she asked after remaining quiet for a surprising amount of time. They had just about reached the dump.

“yeah?”

“What’s...your side of the story?”

“hm?”

“I mean...why do  _ you _ think my people trapped your people underground all those years ago? You guys are hardly threatening- I mean! You don’t seem all that dangerous to me.”

Sans was quiet for a moment. He’d never really been asked this question before.

“well…” Sans searched his mind, recalling all his old history lessons. “i guess it’s kinda hard to say, seeing as i wasn’t there. so i may not be the best bonehead to pass judgement...but i think a lot of it simply had to do with fear.”

“Fear?”

Sans shrugged. “i mean, yeah. based on what i’ve been taught the whole war started in the first place because enough people got scared of us. maybe it was because we were a little better at wielding magic than most of them; maybe it was because we were  _ made _ of magic. even down here there’s the occasional conflict where one monster’s just being dumb because of differences. it doesn’t happen often, but it happens. and humans and monsters have a  _ lot _ of differences.”

Jack kicked an empty tin can. It landed with a splash in a puddle near a larger pile of trash.

“That makes sense to me,” she said. “I guess humans just automatically get scared of what they don’t understand, because I promise we haven’t gotten much better. There may not be any more monsters around up there to fight against, but we sure don’t seem to have run out of enemies.”

Jack got quiet. Sans led them through the maze of garbage heaps, trying to skirt the deeper streams all wending their way towards the Abysmal Waterfall somewhere off in the distance to their right. Occasionally, she would grab something from a pile and inspect it.

“Wow, there’s a lot of great stuff down here,” she said, studying a DVD case. She opened the case, and immediately her curious smile sank into a disappointed frown. The case was empty.

“hehe. some of the time. but hey, you know what they say…’one human’s trash is another monster’s living room couch.’”

“That’s... _ not _ how the saying goes.”

“i know.”

“But it definitely explains why my bed last night was so lumpy!” Jack giggled. Sans laughed, too. After some more wandering, he turned them in the direction of home.

“so, what’s your plan? how long do you want to stay with us? because i’m sure paps won’t mind if you stay forever. i can tell he likes you.” With this he winked at her.

“Awe, really?” Jack was beaming. “I like him, too! He’s so nice! If a little loud.” She cast an apologetic glance at Sans. He shrugged and grinned. Not a word she’d said was wrong.

“It’s really kind of you to offer,” she continued. “but I don’t want to impose too long. And besides. I need to get  _ home _ .”

Sans’ soul sank. She really was determined to get home, wasn’t she? He would definitely need to warn her, if he couldn’t keep her in Snowdin, where it was relatively safe. He took a deep breath and prepared to deliver the bad news when Jack spoke up again.

“Sans, I really am sorry - about how you guys all got stuck down here.”

He let his shoulders relax. Maybe he could wait a little longer to tell her what awaited her if she tried to go home. She continued.

“I feel ashamed to say this, but until I wound up down here, I’m not sure I would have been any different from the rest of them. It’s hard not to automatically get frightened when you’ve grown up hearing stories about how weird and scary and... _ monstrous _ monsters are. If a monster popped up out of nowhere in my town, I’d probably have wanted it driven out, too, until now.” She looked much older than she had when she’d started speaking.

“it goes both ways, kid. if people down here found out...just how different you were from them...this whole place would be chaos, i’m sure.”

“But does that really excuse us for not  _ trying _ ?” She responded, a sudden spark of life lighting up her face.

Sans felt a strange mix of sympathy and pride for her. The first human to come down here in years, only here for a day and a half, and already she was unlearning all those bad lessons she’d been taught all her life. Maybe, with a little luck and planning...maybe they could work together and show Asgore that not all humans were bad. Though for now, it was far too soon. They would need time. And Sans was going to try his hardest to make as much of it as they needed.

“y’got me there,” was all he could say in response.


End file.
